The Malthusian Trap :: Ludwig von Mises Institute

I suspect that Malthusian population increases may occur in welfare (socialistic, redistributive) societies with no population control and no social stigma attached to bearing a large number of children; however, the left-statist solutions (coerced birth control/abortion, implemented most completely by communist China or subsidized birth control/abortion as sponsored by the US government) or right-statist solutions (Brazilian death squads) are repugnant patches on a system deficient in natural monetary incentives to having a number of children commensurate with one's ability to provide for them.

In a libertarian society, population control arises naturally from pricing signals. The number of children that a couple chooses to have is influenced by the personal cost to them, which depends somewhat on the scarcity of the resources from which those products are produced. Libertarianism encourages resource conservation in the same manner.

As population increases relative to scarce resources for which no alternative exists, one expects that the cost of the scarce critical resource increases, resulting in more parents choosing to have fewer children.